Manufacturing artificial ice.



UNITED Sil/Urnsl @PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARDV BARBATE, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR OF TWO-THIRDSTO JOHN J. KELLER AND AUGUSTUS BRITNEY, OF PHILA- DELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

MAANUFACTU RING ARTiFlClAL ICE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 704,772, dated July1.5,'1902.

Application lecl December 6*, 1901. Serial No. 84,865. (No model.)` i iTo a/Z wwnt t may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD BARRATH, a citizen of the UnitedStates,residing at the city of Philadelphia, in the county ofPhiladelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Manufacturing Artificial Ice, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention has relation to the manufacture of artificial ice, and insuch connection it relates more particularly to the step orstepsnecessary to thaw or free the ice from theplate or pan upon which it hasbeen previously formed.

Heretofore in the manufacture of artificial ice the step having mostdifficulties attending it was that in which the ice was released from.the plate or pan upon which it had been formed. The usual methodofreleasingV the ice was by forcing hot brine, hot gases, or hot fluidthrough either the regular refrigeratingpipes or through extra coils ofpipe interspersed with the usual refrigerating-pipes in the wallsandfloor of the pan or plate. The most serious objection to such amethod was that the rapid heating of the plate or pan by theintroduction of the hot gases or liquid resulted in the warping of theplate or pan and the consequent breaking or splintering of the ice; Bymy present method the plate or pan is gradually heated by graduallyincreasing the pressure of the refrigerating liquid in therefrigerating-pipes, whereby the ice may be quickly and safely removedfrom the plate or pan. v

The nature and scope ofrmy invention willA be more fully understood fromthe followingdescription, takenvin connection with the accompanyingdrawing, forming part hereof, l' and which illustrates diagrammaticallya sys-v tem of manufacturing artificial ice embodyting main features ofmypresent invention.

Referring to the drawing, d represents the usual refrigerating-iiuidpump, .which in the instance illustratedinthe drawing is particularlyadapted to force Vammonia by a pipe b to a coil di The coil d issubjected to a cooling liquid sprayed from a pipe d down upon the coild. The cooled liquid ammonia is then delivered by a pipe d2 to a closedtank 'the suction end of the pump u.

coils f or f in an expanded condition and normally is permitted tofurther expand in said coils f or f'. The return from the coils f or fis by the pipes h and h' to the inlet of the pump a. Normally thepumpe/sucks the ammonia from the series of coils f or f', thuspermitting of the necessary expansion of the ammonia in each coil f orf.Each pipe h and h' is provided with a shut-off cock or valve lc or k',by means of which any coil f orf may be disconnected from If now the iceformed on the coil f is to be released, the cock or valve 7s on the pipeh, leading from said coil to the pump a, is closed. The pump c;continues to work, however, and continues to supply the ammonia to thecoil thaw the ice and release it from the plate or pan in which the coilj' is arranged. When the ice is thus released and removed from the coilf, the valve lt is againopened and the operation of cooling the coil fagain takes placeby permitting the iiuid to expand in said coil. v Thusone or more, but not all, of the coils f or f may be cut out of therefrigerating system by shutting ed the return to the pump a, and thiscutting out will result, as heretofore explained, in gradually backingup the refrigerating liquid in the coil or coils cut out and alsogradually increasing the pressure in the coil or coils cut out,andthereby gradually increasing the temperature of the cut out coil orcoils, as required, to release the ice. f

Having thus described the nature and ob ject of my invention, what Iclaim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In the manufacture of ice wherein the ICQ plate or pan is suppliedwith refrigerating liquid which expands in the plate or pan to cool thesame, the method of releasing the ice from the plate or pan whichconsists in irst preventing the expansion of the liquid in the plate orpan and thereafter continuing to supply to the plate or pan the liquidrefrigerant whereby the pressure of the refrigerant liquid is graduallyincreased Within the plate or pan and a gradual increase of `thetemperature of the plate or pan is secured.

2. In the manufacture of articial ice, wherein a series of coils aresupplied with the refrigerating liquid, said liquid being permitted toexpand in said coils, the method of EDWARD BARRATH.

Witnesses:

J. WALTER DoUGLAss, THOMAS M. SMITH.

